You have found the perfect agent to help you sell your home quickly and for a great price.  Now what?

Now you want to make sure that your house shows well to attract potential buyers so your agent is able to sell your house quickly for the price you want or need.  While it is mostly the agent’s job to sell your home, there are a number of fast and easy ways to help out.

Step 1: Tidy up.  Remove any dishes or clutter from your counters and floors.  Make sure any children’s toys are moved into a corner or put away out of sight.  Check your bathroom counters to make sure they are neat, and check your bedrooms to make sure that your beds are made.  You don’t need to get down and dirty to prepare your house for a showing, but make sure things are relatively clean and clutter-free.

Step 2: Liven up.  Open your draperies and blinds, and turn on the lights.  Darkness makes rooms seem small and depressed.  By opening your blinds, you can also showcase any natural light that your might get into your home, which some buyers particularly like to see.  Also adding a few vases of flowers around the house help to freshen up and make your house seem more lively and livable.

Step 3: Seasonal issues.  If you live in Michigan, like me, then you probably know that we get a great deal of snow and ice during the winter months.  If your house is going to show during the winter, try to keep your drives and walks clear of snow and salted, and to prevent any snow or salt from being tracked through your home, politely ask that shoes and boots be removed before showings.  During the summer months, make sure that your grass is green and neatly trimmed, and that you have flowers in bloom to give your home that “white picket fence” feel.

While all of these easy steps may seem like common sense, you might be surprised by how much something so simple can set you apart from the house next door.Type your new text here.

Ready to get the keys to your new home yet?  If your home inspection and appraisal have been completed, any potential issues have been resolved or negotiated, and you have turned in any additional documentation required by the mortgage officer you should be really close to closing.  At this point, you are just waiting for a “Clear to Close” from the mortgage company saying that you are finally approved and have a green light to schedule your closing. 

Once your agent receives a Clear to Close, there are still a few things that everyone needs to do before closing.  First, your agent should be working with your mortgage officer and title company to ensure that all lending and title documents are being combined and sent to the seller’s title company.  You will receive a final settlement figure from your agent or mortgage officer with the exact dollar and cents amount that you will need to bring with you to closing, along with instructions for your closing funds.  The title company will either require you to bring certified funds with you to closing or wire the funds.  Either way, the title company will give you all of the details you need in order to make sure things are done correctly.

In addition to the final paperwork aspects of closing, you and your agent will want to schedule a final walkthrough of your new home, for the day of closing if possible.  Since you probably haven’t been in your soon to be home for a few weeks, this final walkthrough gives you the opportunity to ensure that the seller has maintained the property and that there hasn’t been any new damage to the property.  If you do notice new damage to the property you will want to have your agent notify the listing agent immediately so something can be worked out.  In most cases though, the final walkthrough should go smoothly and you can head off to your closing.

Once you have scheduled your closing, the title and mortgage companies have all cooperated in getting the full closing package together, and you have completed your final walkthrough you should find yourself sitting at a conference table with the sellers and a few title company agents – and your hand may or not be cramping from signing and initialing on what seems to be an endless number of pages. J As soon as you are done signing on the very last page though you are officially a homeowner!  YAY!

Now, fast forward a little while and you are relaxing on a couch in your new home, thinking about how painless the home buying process was now that it is done.  Congratulations!

If your inspection has gone well, you will want to get in to see your mortgage officer to fill out a formal mortgage application, and pay for an appraisal.  Depending on which type of mortgage you are applying for there may be different documentation needed by the mortgage officer; when you call the mortgage officer to schedule a time to meet you should ask for a list of documents you should bring with you.  Some common documents are valid identification and tax returns from previous years.  You will want to make sure that you have everything that the mortgage officer has requested so that the application and approval process goes smoothly.

When you are meeting with your mortgage officer you should ask about the appraisal timeframe.  The mortgage officer will handle the actual appraisal order, but it is always good to know how long before you will receive the appraisal report so you can track where you are on the path to closing on your new home.  It has been my experience that from the time you order an appraisal is could take up to two or three weeks for you to receive the report, depending on how active the market is.  The appraiser will create a lengthy report that details how they value the house based on comparable homes in the area.  You are entitled to a copy of this report, which can provide you with a wealth of information.  The most important part of the appraisal report is the appraised value of the property, which is the amount that your mortgage company will base their mortgage amount on.

In an ideal scenario the appraiser will agree with the purchase price of the home, or maybe value it a little higher – this is like instant equity for you as soon as you close.  Similar to the home inspection however, an issue may arise if the appraised value of the house comes back lower than the agreed upon price of your Purchase Agreement.  In this scenario, if the purchase price were to remain the same then you, the buyer, would be responsible for paying any additional costs on your own. 

For  example: If you are taking out a conventional mortgage (20% down) and your purchase price is $105,000, but the appraisal returns at $95,000, then the mortgage company will only pay 80% on the appraised value of $95,000.  You would have to still pay 20% down on the $95,000 amount for the mortgage, and then an additional $10,000 to meet the purchase contract price of $105,000.  This means that you would be paying an additional $8,000 in closing costs.
Paying more doesn’t sound so great, but do not worry.  The seller may be willing to negotiate the selling price, even though they aren’t required to.  A low appraisal, while being a potential deal-breaker, can create a lot of leverage for a buyer because the seller will have an extremely tough time convincing anyone to pay more for their house than it is actually worth.  In other words, it is usually in the seller’s best interest to be somewhat flexible if the appraisal comes in low and they want to sell their house.

The entire home buying process can be a series of negotiations, and nothing is set in stone until you are at the closing table.  Remember, there is no reason for you to panic if the appraisal of your new home comes in low, and it may actually work to your advantage to save a few dollars if your agent can skillfully negotiate with the seller on your behalf.

YAY!  Things are really starting to come together and your offer was finally accepted, but what now?

Now, it is time to schedule your private home inspection.  Per your Purchase Agreement (PA), you will have a time frame within which you must complete your home inspection.  Refer to your PA to see how long you have, but the sooner you schedule it the better. 

To find a good home inspector you can turn to family and friends again to see who they have used, or you can rely on your agent, who can probably recommend a few great inspectors they have worked with in the past.  Some buyers try to shop around for inspectors, which is fine, but you don’t know exactly what you will get, so I would recommend working on a referral from someone you know and trust.  You may even be able to get a little discount from the inspection company if you are a referral or if your agent knows when an inspection company offers discounts.

One question a lot of buyers have is, “Should we be there for the inspection?”  The short answer is: YES!  The inspector will be able to walk through the home with you and point out what he or she notices about the home, discuss potential problems and solutions, or answer any questions you may have.  A good inspector will always take the time to make sure that you are comfortable with the information that is in the inspection report, and explain everything so you know exactly what you are buying.

Hopefully your inspection goes smoothly and you want to continue with the purchase of the home.  If this is the case, then you will want to fill out a contingency removal and send it to the seller to notify them that you are satisfied with the inspection results and would like to continue with the purchase.  If, however, there are some issues that you believe the seller should address, then you may have the option of requesting that the seller fix something or discount the purchase price to make up for any repairs that you may have to make when you close on the house.  Your ability to ask for repairs or discounts all depends on whether or not the sale is “as is.”  Finally, in the worst scenario, you discover a major issue that puts you off from the house, in which case you have the option of canceling the purchase contract, and restarting your search for a new home.

Remember, the inspection is for your knowledge.  In my experience, very few houses pass inspection with an absolutely clean report, so don’t sweat it if the house you want to buy doesn’t either.  You just have to ask yourself if a problem with the house is something you can live/work with or not; knowing that when you purchase the home you will be able to make all of the changes, little repairs, or touch-ups you want when the house is yours.